The Six Sigma Black Belt program proved to be extremely useful for our company, as it provided us with a systematic method to develop and implement improvements. In business, not every idea is a ‘good’ idea, but having no ideas is always a bad idea.
To help solve the problem, Par Sterile reached out to the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center (The Center),part of the MEP National Network™, for training in data-driven techniques and a certification in Six Sigma Black Belt to help improve the effectiveness of operational processes. The Center’s experts were able to guide Par Sterile’s Black Belt candidate in how to ask the appropriate questions, identify and validate ways to measure the critical outputs, and then study the process to find factors which resolved the problem.
Following the steps outlined in the training by The Center, Par Sterile began by defining the project specifics into a charter, process mapping the current process, and then working out exactly how to measure inside-filled losses. This allowed them to create and validate the measurement method which would be used to resolve the problem.
Next, Par Sterile clearly defined where the current process was operating in a baseline capability study. They now had a basis to make comparisons to during the analysis of factors. Then The Center and Par Sterile began analyzation by studying the various potential factors uncovered during process mapping. A design of experiments (DOE) was used to study these factors. This culminated with creating a fill check calculator to allow the operators to independently adjust the fill levels. The calculator now provides the settings they should use based on the product they are making.
Finally, Par Sterile and The Center implemented controls so the improvements can stand the test of time. They also updated their standard operating procedures and trained operators on the new changes. Following implementation, fill check data was monitored for approximately three months to confirm improvements.